Andrew runstetlter and albert windeck



tiateh grieten detriti @ffice Letters Patent No. 74,006, dated .February4, 1868.

IMPROVEMENT TN GOTTONSCRAPER AND GUTTER.-

dige Sulphate 'rifiuti iria tigris Stuurt @that mit making pitt nf tigttime.

Be' it known that we, ANDREW RUNSTETLER and ALBERT WI'NDECK, of the cityand county of Peoria, in the State of Illinois, have invented a new anduseful' mchine for cultivating cotton, called a Cotton-Scraper andCutter; aud we do hereby declare that the following is .a full, clear,and exact description of the construction and operation ofthe same,reference being had to the'annexed drawings, making a eport of thisspecification, innvhi'chv Figure l is a perspective view,

Figure 2, a. plsn.-

Figure 3, perspective view of e .pair of the ,scrapers," and Figure 4side elevation of Scrapers.

Figure 5, underneath view of regulator,v and Figure 6 side View ofgearing to wheels.

This machine consists of a. square frame, four feet by twofeet twoinches in length, and constructed of six pieces of wood, BC D, two bythree inches square each piece. This frame is supported on wheels, theaxle of which is between the two hindmost Abars v:D E. l The 'wheels arewood-spoked. On this axle of iron is fastened themcogged hevelled wheelJ, about seven and a. half inches in diameter, which turns the coggedbevelled iron pinion G, situated on therear'end of anotheriro-n axle, F,running lengthwise oi' frame, or from 'front to back, as far as formeraxle. On this axle Fare situated thogrevolving hoes H H H H, which aree.,

theurms of hocs)provided with slots a allowing ofthe adjustmei't' theseparate pairs farther apart ou axle,

` and ofthe adjustment or shortening and lengthening of the; distance ofthe hoes from axle. The hoes are threeinches deep, and present a.'length'of nine inches toithesurface of the soil,'(z`. e., three by nineinches.) The arms of hoes are twelve inches in length abone the hoe, endabout two and a. half inches wide, with a half-inch slot, d, runningdown towardfhoe, about halfthelengthcf crm, all made of quarter-inchsteel. There can be `one or two pairs of hoes to' this axle', asmaybefound most convenient for cultivatiomnnd our-machines are constructedeither way. Thehoesare fastened to the ironaxle F, at its flattenedpart, by means of a washer and bolt through the slotsand axle, allowingoi' the shortening or lengthening of the cut, as before intimated.

The hoes are slightly turned upat the cutting-edge, so'as' `tofacilitate the cutting out the superiuous cottonplants in the rowsl .i v

On the -front part of machine are the Scrapers o b, situated between thetwo front bars B C.' They are two uprightA pieces of wood, two'feet fourinches high each,vby inches square, and are hung about four or fiveinches aphrt 'on two iron pins, m fm, passing through both the bars BUand the scraper-handles a and connected on their tops, c c, with thecurved irons it L, by screws.' These irons i, L are Yone inch wide byeight inches long, (7L iig. 5,) having a common-pivot or fastening, j,on the under side of the regulator I, at its forward end, at or nearAthe further end, or near handle'ofregulator, which is about three feetfour inches long, und on its under sid'e arecogs or teeth n, by means'otwhich the scrapers are held in position. The regu= later, by its forwardor backward motion, increases or diminishes the distance between theScrapers, and the' teeth n hold the same at the required position, bymeans of the catch or baron the upright stay iu front of driver-s seat.The. regulator, at its forward end, has an iron pin, say, half :tn-inchin diameter, projecting from .the wood far enough to admit of itssliding buck and forth in the bracep of iron on the forward bar B. ThevVscrnpers, of thin steel, at the lower end of the scraper-arms a areupright plates, square, or nearly so, about six inches high by nineinches wide, slightly turned forward at their lwer edges. The outer sideof each sei-aper'is turned backwards, about fifteen degrees from thefront line of machine, and being intended to scrape the sloping sides ofthe cotton-ridge, (one on each sidc,) they have (e1-e., thecutting-edges) an inclination from 4the space between them to each oftheir outward angles. Thus these Scrapers remove the superiiuous plantsand weeds to any extent on euch side of the sloping ridgessimultaneously, leving n growth of cotton-plants,r say, from two and ahalf to three inches wide, on the ridge between the scrapers. Therunning-gear can bc thrown out of operation, when required, by means ofthe levers L M on each side, and next wheels, by ,pressl ing them downagaiust'the hubs ,of spoked wheels, as may he seen by drawings. Adiagram of lover is seen .at iig. ti.

The operation ofthe machine is as follows: The driver ridesupon the seatfixed upon the rear part of the frame, fromwhich he regulates the actionof the machine. Thus, onstarting for the field, the lever M is presseddown, so throwing the cogs out of gear. When ready to hoe, the operationis reversed, and vthe -lever L is depressed, as shown in iig. '2. Thescrapers, by means of `the pins m m, 'are kept at'the necessary heightto avoid Istriking ground, and the arms c c of scrapers being piercedwith holes, their heght'or depth is easily regulated, when ready tobegin, and the distance between sc'rapers is regulated by the arxn orregulator I, which operates on the upper end of the Scrapers at c o.' aforward motonof same diminishing' their distance, and reverse motionextending same. I A

The machine is designed to supply the place of many Ihield-hands, doingthe work expeditiously and neatly, the hoesfollowing the Scrapers,cutting away transversely, each revolution, ,a space of superiluousplants, say,

nine inches in lengtln'leavng a growth of plants three inches longbetween each cut, thus leaving room for a thrifty growth of the -tenderplants. Two horses are suiiicient f o'r the draught.

What we claim as our invention, and desire to secure by 'Letters Patent,is-f- `1. The mode, substantially as set forth, of adjusting theScrapers o o, by ineens of curved irons la h con- 'Inec'ted with theregulator I.

2. The combination of u. 'drivers seat, the levers Maud L forcontrolling the action of the revolving hoes E H, and the regulator Ifor controlling-the' Scrapers, substantially as set forth.

' ANDREW RUNSTETLER,

ALBERT WINDECK.

Witnesses t EDMUND Tunnnow, N. BAKER.

